


Protect

by elenei



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-25
Updated: 2016-07-25
Packaged: 2018-07-26 17:52:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,046
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7584136
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elenei/pseuds/elenei
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Arya tells Gendry a secret.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Protect

**Author's Note:**

> This is a submission for Day Two of Arya/Gendry week. Prompt: Protect.

She felt stupid for not putting it together sooner. It was written as clear as day on his face; in his thick black hair and light blue eyes. She could see it in the rest of him too. He was big and bearded and fierce. And the way he swung a hammer-

“Why are you staring at me?”

Gendry’s look was suspicious. He was in a chair beside the fire, taking off his boots. Arya was sitting at the end of the bed.  She had already shuffled out of her own boots and a bit more until she was only in her smallclothes.  They had settled into this routine a fortnight ago. Arya would go up to the room they shared first. Gendry would follow later. He insisted for _discretion_. Arya had tried to tell him that everyone already knew and that she didn’t care but Gendry was too stubborn to see sense. It made no matter. He still found his way to her bed every night. 

Arya chewed her lip but didn’t answer. She wasn’t sure if she should even tell him. Gendry could be so bullheaded sometimes and she didn’t want him running off and doing something stupid once he knew the truth. Her silence seemed to make him nervous.

“Do you want me to go?”

“No, stupid.”

“Then what’s wrong?”

Arya gestured for Gendry to sit next to her and he did. The bed dipped underneath his weight. She placed what was supposed to be a reassuring hand on his arm but Gendry’s muscles tightened. He was always doing that when she touched him.

 “I’m going to tell you something but you have to swear you won’t tell anyone else.”

“You know I won’t, Arya.” His voice was serious. “All your secrets are safe with me.”

“It’s not my secret. It’s yours.”

He screwed his face up. “I don’t understand. I haven’t kept anything from you.” Arya rolled her eyes. She knew that. Gendry was the only person within a thousand leagues that she trusted. When she had returned Arya hadn’t been sure. He had left her for the brotherhood after all. But Gendry had made it clear to Arya where his loyalties lie. 

“You’re the son of King Robert Baratheon,” Arya blurted. There was no point in further delay. The sooner he knew the sooner they could decide what was to be done.

Her words shut him up. The only sound in the room they shared was the sound of the fire crackling and Gendry’s breathing. Arya thought she could almost hear his heart racing. It took him a long while to speak again.

“The King?” Gendry shook his head, stubbornly. He appeared to be in pain. “No, you’re wrong. My mother was a tavern wench. I’m just-”

“It’s why the gold cloaks wanted you,” Arya explained before he could continue with excuses. That seemed so long ago. They had wanted her too. That was why Arya had told Gendry the truth of her identity. This secret had brought them together without either of them knowing what it was.

“They were going to kill me because I was the king’s bastard?” His voice was full of morbid fascination.

“Joffrey and the others were bastards too.” Arya had learned a lot since returning to Westeros. Everything was starting to make sense. Her father’s fate and half remembered words from the dungeons of King’s Landing. She hadn’t understood it all as a girl but Arya had brought all the lessons from Braavos back with her. They were proving to be most useful. “The Queen must have thought you were a threat.”

Gendry had nothing to say to that either. He was silent as he stared off into space. Arya hadn’t known what Gendry would do with this knowledge but she had not expected this. She had figured any man would be proud to know he had the blood of kings.

“The Baratheon’s are a very noble house,” Arya offered. As the words left her mouth Arya realized how stupid they sounded. The Starks were just as noble but it had never changed anything for Jon. He had always felt like he was an outside, same as Arya. Until recently at least. She had heard about Jon as well. _King Jon_ , she reminded herself. Arya had to bite her lip when she thought of that.

“It doesn’t matter. I’m still just a bastard.” There was a scowl on his face now. “This won’t change anything.”

Arya looked down to where Gendry’s hands were tightly clasped in his lap. She covered them with her own. For a moment she thought Gendry might pull away. But he took her hands and gave them a squeeze.   

“Our fathers were very good friends, you know.”

That brought a faint smile to Gendry’s face. It was tired and sad but it was there.

“Like us?”

“Yes. They grew up together and when they were older they fought side by side,” she told him. _And they died together_ , she thought but kept to herself. “They looked out for each other.” Arya paused before continuing more slowly. “We do that too.” She remembered how he had kept her own secret. “And that’s what I’m going to do now.” 

Gendry raised a curious eyebrow.

 “I don’t know what this means,” Arya admitted. “They already tried to kill you once.”

“But the Lannisters are all gone aren’t they?”

 “The dragons aren’t.” Gendry’s mouth snapped shut. Arya understood his fear better than even he did. She had _seen_ them. There were three and two she had not seen but all were fighting for the same throne. Arya had hoped she had seen the last of war but there was no end in sight. Especially if her dreams could be trusted and Arya believed they could be. _Colder things than dragons are coming._ “I doubt they’ll take kindly to the son of Robert Baratheon, bastard or no. That’s why no one can know about this.”

Gendry nodded. “I don’t want to be fed to a dragon,” he joked weakly.

“Don’t worry,” Arya said as she brushed some hair out of his eyes. “I’ll protect you.”

And she would. If any dragons or lions wanted to devour Gendry they would first have to get through Arya Stark.


End file.
